The present invention relates to fluid operated tools in general, but more specifically to rivet squeezers operated by pneumatic power.
Pneumatic rivet squeezers are known in the art, and form an invaluable tool in the aircraft manufacturing industry. Opposing forces of some tons in magnitude can be made available to an artisan through a portable rivet squeezer. Such forces may be applied to the ends of rivets for joining structural elements together in a conventional way. The internal components of rivet squeezers have been developed over the years to provide efficiency, so that a degree of portability has been achieved in the manufacture of rivet squeezers. However, shortcoming still exist.
A basic portable rivet squeezer includes two pivoting jaws configured to provide a considerable opposing force to the external tips of the jaws. By forcing internal arms of the jaws apart, external tips of the jaws are forced together to provide the squeezing force. The force applied to open the internal arms of the jaws is typically applied by a reciprocating pneumatic ram, which is under considerable mechanical advantage through hydraulic leverage. At the tip of the pneumatic ram is a wedge which is inserted between the ends of the internal arms, forcing them apart under additional mechanical advantage. Once the squeezing force has been delivered to the rivet or other toolpiece, through the extension of the pneumatic ram, the ram is returned to its original position by a return spring system.
Although some degree of size reduction has taken place in the development of portable rivet squeezers, a current lightweight squeezer commonly may weigh around 1.7 kg. This size is an improvement on past technology, but it is still sufficiently large to present problems to artisans of small stature, such as women, who may find extended use of such a rivet squeezer to be difficult and tiring. Not only does the weight of such a device present a problem for artisans to manipulate the device with dexterity, but the size presents problems when the device is applied to smaller rivets, or rivets in awkward positions.
Thus, there is a present need for a lightweight miniaturized rivet squeezer that is capable of delivering the same squeezing force as current devices, while overcoming the shortcomings of size present in the prior art. The present invention addresses these and other needs.